I like a good academic discussion. I also love celebrity gossip. So imagine my complete joy last Friday when I attended a lecture on civil rights featuring Reverend Al Sharpton as the keynote speaker. The lecture was a thought provoking discussion about contemporary civil rights—what we are fighting for and the importance of unity among all special interest groups. The panelists talked about viewing civil rights as a continuing process instead of a movement that happened in the sixties. They talked about immigration laws and how Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio is violating federal law when he racially profiles Mexican Americans in Arizona then parades them around in pink underwear. State Representative Krysten Sinema—a lawyer, professor and all-around impressive politician who represents Central Phoenix—talked about the importance of gay rights. RaulYzaguirre, ASU’s Director for Community Development & Civil Rights, made an interesting point when he said that we don’t have the language to talk about conquered populations like Native Americans. There were many people in the audience despite the fact that it started at 8:00 a.m. and it was nice to see and hear from progressive people who are a growing constituency here in Arizona. Still, I couldn’t help but wonder as I listened, is Reverend Al really dating Lisa Raye? That’s what the gossip blogs speculate…and he is looking slimmer these days.

My aunt who is a scientist but behaves like a writer,the one with stacks of books between her furniture;aunt who is alone by choice with unopened boxesall over her home; doctor-aunt, microbiologist aunt,the one with cookbooks from around the world;aunt like a redwood tree; the one whose tests have comeback fine but who needs a hearing aid; the aunt who rodeher bicycle across D.C., who visits farmer's marketsand Vietnamese restaurants, who hated working for the FDA;Depression Era Aunt, War Time Aunt, woman whoraised a son and daughter, who is closer to her son thanto her daughter; aunt who strode from wedlock laughing;favorite aunt, the one with a single sibling left, who has burieda mother, two sisters and one brother, whose fatherwas not around; aunt as traveler, as speaker of many tongues;the one who saves me the Times Book Reviewsand hands them over in a plastic bag; my aunt who would reada praise poem that I wrote asked on Saturday if I'd write her obituary

The writer's first affinity is not to a loyalty, a tradition, a morality, a religion, but to life itself, and to its representation in language. Nothing is taboo. The writer will go anywhere, say anything to get it said; in fact, the writer is bent on doing so. The writer is bent.

Jayne Anne Phillips, "Why She Writes" from Why I Write: Thoughts on the Craft of Fiction (Little Brown).

Style consultant Sherrie Mathieson will be at the Ralph Lauren store on Camelback and 24th in Phoenix on Saturday October 17th from 9:30am-12:30 p.m. Mathieson is promoting her book Steal This Style: Moms and Daughters Swap Wardrobe Secrets which "shows you exactly how to take the best and most appropriate ideas from the younger generation — for every occasion."

I wonder what Mathieson would say about Rihanna's swagger-jacking of Prince's style? The YBF has a hilarious photo battle between the elder musician and the young singer when both appeared at the Chanel fashion show in Paris on Monday.

If you’re busy, say with a job, you may not have time to do hours of investigative research of the policy issues that affect your everyday life. I know I don’t. I do, however, depend on journalists to report the facts straight on important policy issues. That’s why I’ve been bothered by recent reports about Iran’s capacity to build nuclear weapons. The reporting sounds eerily like the buildup to the Iraq war which we know was based on false evidence.

For an alternative view of this issue check out C-Span’s interview of Scott Ritter, former UN Weapons Inspector from 1991 to 1998. You’ll remember that in 2002 Ritter was one of the few experts who questioned whether Iraq really had weapons of mass destruction as our media often reported. Last weekend, Ritter was on C-Span’s Washington Journal questioning the evidence that Iran has nuclear capabilities. Ritter talked about the difference between what he called fact-based analysis and faith based analysis. He discussed why he questions the NYTimes Sunday article about Iran having data to make a bomb. And he discredited these “quotes” often attributed to Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad by the U.S. press: 1) that Ahmadinejad denies the Holocaust happened and 2) that Ahmadinejad wants to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Check it out.

Most days I feel lazy compared to other writers that I know. It takes a certain amount of chutzpah, cojones, hustle—whatever you want to call it—to make a living as a writer, and I have not had the appetite for the hustle that I’ve seen in other people. What’s the writer’s hustle, you ask? In addition to creating work that she can publish, a writer has the following to worry about:

1) Her day job (which may include grading stacks of papers)2) Her family life (which may include menial tasks like fixing a porch light, replacing a broken trampoline, repairing struts on her car, going to the grocery store hundreds of times each *%$!!!?% month. Ahem.)3) Reading her work in public4) The pursuit of writing awards5) Attending and contributing to writing conferences and workshops6) Applying for writing residencies and grants (so that she can actually write)7) Submitting her work to journals, contests, agents, publishers8) Remaining sober and happy

I’ve been timid to go at this list full tilt, but this year I’ve placed my toes in the water. For the first time, I’ve applied for grants and residencies and I’ve submitted my work (over and over) at a frequency that approaches obsessive compulsive disorder. It is a lot of work especially because the deadlines all seem to fall at the same time of the year.

For me, applying for residencies produced the most anxiety. It also caused writers block, self doubt, pity, anger, and euphoria (once I finally got through the applications). The application process forced me to examine my goals as a writer and in the end I felt a clearer sense of purpose. I also wondered why I’ve been reluctant to pursue writing residencies or other brass rings on the list. I suspect that my gender, race and regional background have played a part in my reluctance. Black Midwestern Episcopalian wives are not known to be real aggressive.

“I often wonder what chance emerging writers have at these residencies that are so shrouded in acclaim and prestige. Would they want their writers (and other artists) to be just as accomplished as they are?”